Shaft-loop for harness.



w.'-"N. HEATON. SHAFT LOOP 1:03 HARNESS. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 26}1908.

Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

1n: mmms Psrsks cm, WASHINGTON, D. c

WILLIAM N. HEATON, OF DES MOINES, IOWA.

SHAFT-L00? FQR HARNESS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

Application filed August 28, 1908. Serial No. 450,702.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM N. Eamon, a citizen of the United States,residing at Des hl'oines, in the county of Polk and State of lowa, haveinvented a certain new and useful Shaft-Loop for Harness, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a shaft loop for harness ofsimple, durable and inexpensive construction designed to receive a shaftand to permit said shaft to freely move longitudinally through the loopand in such a manner that the shaft will not engage or bind at any partof the loop so that the only function of the loops will be to hold theshafts in their proper position of elevation relative to the harness,and so that the alternate pulling forwardly and pushing backwardly ofthe draft animal in the harness will not tend to cause the saddleportion of the harness to rock upon the draft animals ack and therebyproduce friction and wear such as might tend to cause soreness in thedraft animal.

My invention consists in certain details in the construction,arrangement and combination of the various parts of the device wherebythe objects contemplated are attained, as hereinaft r more fully setforth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which Figure 1 shows a sectional View of the shaft loopwith a shaft therein, the shaft loop in said figure being taken on theline ll of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 shows an enlarged sectional view on the line22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 shows a detail sectional view taken through thecentral portions of the rollers to illustrate the wire for supportingthe rollers. Fig. 1 shows a side elevation of the shaft loop taken fromthe outer side thereof. Fig. 5 shows a detail perspective view of themetal strip in which the rollers are sup ported, showing the shape ofsaid strip before the lugs are bent at right-angles to receive theroller supporting wire, and Fig. 6 shows an enlarged, detail perspectiveview of a portion of the roller supporting strip with a rollersupporting wire in position therein and a roller on the wire.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, I have used the referencenumeral 10 to indicate that portion of the harness strap to which theshaft loops are ordinarily attached. This strap may, if desired, beprovided with the usual buckles for connecting it with the saddle strapand the belly band of a harness.

The frame of the shaft loop is made of two sheet metal members 11 and12, the member 11 being semi-circular in cross section and provided withflanges 13 at its edges, and the member 12 being flat in cross sectionand connected with the flanges 18 by rivets 1 1-. These two members thatform the shaft loop are jointly arranged in circular form with the flatmember 12 on the inside, and so arra ged as to form an opening largeenough to freely admit a shaft 15, as shown in Fig. 1. i. connect thestrap 10 with the frame of the loop by providing brackets 16 and 17 atthe upper and lower portions of the loop, through which brackets thestrap 10 is extended. The strap is fitted close to the curved outerportion of the shaft loop and its side edges are connected to theflanges 13, as clearly shown in Fig. 4.

The frame member 1 is provided throughout its entire length with aseries of openings 18 and with integral lugs 19 at one side of eachopening, said lugs being bent outwardly to positions at right-angles tothe frame member 12, as shown in Fig. 6. In constructing this framemember, I use suitable dies for cutting out the openings and lugs 19,and the frame member 12 is first formed in the position shown in Fig. 5,each of said lugs being provided with a central opening 20. Then afterbeing thus cut out the lugs are bent at right-angles. In each of theopenings 19, I place a roller 21. A portion of said roller projectsinwardly from the frame 12 and said rollers are all rotatably mounted inposition by means of a wire 22 which is extended through each roller andthrough all of the lugs 19. In this way the rollers are held suitablyspaced apart and are so arranged that they may freely turn, the inneredges of the rollers being so positioned that they will loosely engage ashaft extended through the loop.

In practical use and assuming that a harness is provided with myimproved shaft loops, and that the harness is placed on a draft animaland vehicle shafts placed in the shaft loops, and the tugs and hold-backstraps attached, then it is obvious that when the draft animal pullsforwardly, the shafts will freely slide through the lugs and all of thestrain upon the draft animal will be applied to the tugs, then when thedraft animal is backed, or holds back when going down hill, all of thestrain upon the harness will be thrown upon the hold back straps and theshafts will freely slide through the shaft loops. In this way the onlystrains upon the saddle portion of the harness are those caused bycarrying the weight of the shafts.

In cases where the shaft loops are firmly fixed to the harness, then thestrains caused by the shafts will tend to rock the saddle upon the backof the draft animal and frequently causes soreness at the point wherethe saddle rubs on the draft animal. By means of my improvement, injuryof this kind is avoided. I have found also that it is just as necessaryto provide anti-friction rollers at the sides and top of the shaft loopas it is at the bottom, for the reason that the strain of the shaft uponthe shaft loops is often times both lateral and in an upward direction,and without anti-friction rollers at said points some of the strains, atleast, would be thrown upon the shaft loops and therefore upon thesaddle portion of the harness. Furthermore, it is desi able that theframe of the shaft loop be of comparatively small diameter and ofcompact construction. By the arrangement herein shown and described,both of these results are ac complished and a frame is provided that isvery inexpensive in construction and yet has great strength and is madeno larger in outline than is demanded for containing small rollersbetween the shaft opening and the outer surface of the shaft loop.

I claim as my invention:

1. A shaft loop, comprising inner and outer sheet metal body portionsarranged in circular form and provided with a central opening to receivea shaft, and a series of small rollers arranged therein in radialpositions with their inner portions projecting inwardly beyond the innermember of the shaft loop.

2. An improved shaft loop, comprising two frame members, the outer onebeing semi-circular in cross section and provided, with flanges at itssides, being fiat and connected to said flanges, both of said framemembers being formed in substantially circular shape with a centralopening to receive a shaft, said flat frame member being provided with aand with outwardly projected lugs adjacent to said openings, rollershaving their body portions contained between said frame members and anda wire ring assed through all of said lugs and all of said rollers.

3. An improved shaft loop, comprising two frame members, the outer onebeing semi-circular in cross section and provided 65 with flanges at itssides, and the inner one being flat and connected to said flanges, bothof said frame members being formed in substantially circular shape witha central opening to receive and with outwardly projected lugs adjacentto said openmgs, rollers havmg their body portions contained betweensaid frame members and their inner positions projected m- 75 wardlytoward the center of the opening, and a wire ring passed through all ofsaid lugs and all of said rollers, and a strap permanently secured tothe outer surface of the frame with its end portions extended re- 80 andthe inner one series of openings .55.

their inner portions projected in-- H wardly toward the center of theopening,

a shaft, said fiat frame member being provided with a series of openings

